Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman
LOS ANGELES — Two founding partners of a Los Angeles law firm involved in the $4 billion child sexual abuse settlement with Los Angeles County are facing disciplinary charges for the unauthorized practice of law and the collection of improper fees.
In a June 4 advisory, the State Bar of California said it filed notices of disciplinary charges (NDCs) against two founding partners of the Downtown LA Law Group (DTLA), Daniel Azizi and Farid Yaghoubtil, for allegedly operating personal injury practices in jurisdictions outside California where they lacked proper licensing.
The charges against Azizi and Yaghoubtil, as well as DTLA litigation attorney Igor Fradkin, come on the heels of the State Bar filing another NDC against a former DTLA partner, Salar Hendizadeh, in March. The latest disciplinary notices indicate that DTLA — a high-volume law practice employing 200 staff members and 40 attorneys — in recent years operated in other jurisdictions, including Texas, Florida, Maryland, Arizona, Iowa, Michigan, Virginia and Tennessee, even though the partners facing charges were not authorized to do so.
The State Bar alleges Azizi and Yaghoubtil bear responsibility for the alleged misconduct due to their roles as signatories on DTLA client trust funds.
The actions filed against DTLA do not relate specifically to the county’s 2025 settlements of child sexual abuse claims under California’s Assembly Bill 218, which extended the civil statute of limitations for filing such claims, creating a “lookback window” for legal actions that previously were time-barred.
A statement from the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office emailed to the Southern California Record said the office is actively investigating potential fraud related to AB 218 lawsuits that were filed against the county.
“We look forward to working with the State Bar in connection with their separate investigation in pursuit of charges against individuals whose alleged conduct raises serious concerns about the integrity of these lawsuits,” the statement says. “Accountability is essential to protecting both legitimate victims and public trust in the justice system. Our office will continue the meticulous review of any potential fraudulent activity and will take appropriate actions to hold responsible parties accountable.”
The District Attorney Office’s investigation includes inquiries into the conduct of claimants, attorneys, medical professionals and so-called “cappers,” according to the statement. The term “cappers” refers to non-attorneys who seek out people claiming they have been harmed and attempt to connect them with attorneys.
The District Attorney Office’s statement emphasized that the office is committed to making sure that real victims of child abuse receive fair compensation.
“At the same time, we will aggressively pursue anyone who is fraudulently exploiting this settlement, stealing from true victims and from the hardworking Los Angeles County taxpayers who will bear the cost of these crimes for years to come,” the statement says.
Dawyn R. Harrison, the county counsel, said attorneys must follow rules of professional conduct enforced by the State Bar to ensure taxpayers and those seeking legal services have trust in the system.
“The State Bar’s efforts to ensure the standards of care for the legal profession are met is critical for everyone, which is why the county referred concerning information about the alleged actions taken by the DTLA Law Group in the alleged sexual assault litigation to the State Bar,” a statement from the county counsel emailed to the Record says.
The State Bar alleges Fradkin, DTLA’s litigation attorney, acted as lead attorney in cases arising in other states and that he sent demand letters and negotiated settlements without any meaningful interactions with licensed local counsel. The latest NDCs also allege that non-attorney DTLA staff members gave legal advice and documents that they were not allowed to provide in jurisdictions outside of California.
“The public depends on attorneys to follow the law and to be transparent about where they are authorized to practice,” the State Bar’s chief trial counsel, George Cardona, said in a prepared statement. “When attorneys extend their practice into jurisdictions where they are not licensed or allow staff to engage in unauthorized legal work in those jurisdictions, they put clients at risk.”
DTLA did not respond to a request for comment about the State Bar’s latest actions.
